Ten soldiers of the African Union (AU) peacekeeping force have been killed and seven others injured in an attack by unidentified militants in the war-torn western Sudanese region of Darfur, an AU source said on Sunday.
An unknown number of the AU peacekeepers were also taken as hostages in the attack on a base of the AU peacekeeping force at Haskanita in South Darfur State on Saturday evening, according to the source.
The source who refused to give his name told Xinhua that the AU Mission in Sudan (AMIS) was "extremely concerned" about the accident and was studying how to deal with the situation.
The 7,800-strong AU peacekeeping force was deployed in Darfur to monitor a fragile ceasefire reached between the Sudanese government and the rebel movements in April, 2004.
Armed conflicts as well as attacks on the peacekeepers and humanitarian workers, however, have been repeatedly witnessed even after the Khartoum government signed a peace agreement with a main rebel faction in May, 2006.
The United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution two months ago, authorizing a hybrid peacekeeping operation to be conducted by some 26,000 peacekeepers mainly from African countries. They will be deployed in Darfur by the end of this year.
Source: Xinhua
|
Comment
Tell A Friend
Print Format
Save Article